POLICE and farmers have urged dog owners to ensure their pets don't panic or attack sheep as farmers prepare for the lambing season.

They issued their plea after a man was convicted of sheep worrying and ordered to pay an £800 bill by magistrates because his puppy injured and killed lambs.

Steve Young, 43, told police the 14-month-old Alaskan Malamute called Bear must have run out of a side door of business premises in Dacre, Nidderdale and claimed that it was "playing" with the sheep.

Harrogate magistrates heard the dog's actions killed three lambs and a fourth had to be put down by a vet.

Young, of Crow Lane, Otley, pleaded guilty to sheep worrying and was ordered to pay the sheep's owner £808.27 compensation and was given a conditional discharge. He apologised to the farmer.

Andrew Stephenson of the National Farmers Union, York officer, said; “Sadly, livestock worrying is a problem that farmers have to deal with every year.

"The results can be heart-breaking, with ewes and lambs often very badly injured or killed.

"Just being chased can lead a heavily pregnant ewe to abort her lamb. The effects on farming businesses can also be serious – disrupting breeding programmes that take decades to develop.

“As we approach lambing time, we are appealing to members of the public to be responsible when out and about enjoying the countryside with their dog and keep it on a lead at all times around livestock.

“In many cases of livestock worrying, the dog’s owner is not around, so it is also very important to know where your dog is at all times and keep your dog with you.”

Rural officer PC Bill Hickson, who led the case against Young said: “This was a particularly bad case of sheep worrying that shows how careful dog owners need to be when there is livestock nearby.

“When a dog runs amok among a flock of sheep, it can do a huge amount of damage by panicking the animals. If it causes injuries as well, as happened in this case, there’s a good chance that animal will die.

“The farmer in this case has been left with four dead lambs, a distressed flock and veterinary fees.

“Sheep farmers work hard to look after their flocks and do not like to see them suffer. Incidents like this one are therefore very distressing for them, as well as their animals. That’s why we deal with offenders robustly and when necessary will bring them before the courts, so they can be sentenced appropriately.”